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Avant vs Money Lion

To help you find the Best Personal Loans, TopConsumerReviews.com provides you with an in-depth comparison of Avant and Money Lion.

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Are you in need of some cash? Historically, borrowers have had limited options for a personal loan. You could ask a family member, a friend, or find a personal finance company that offered fixed-rate loans, typically at exobrtantly high interest rates.

Today, however, finding a personal loan brings several more options to the table. While you can still ask a family member, or get a high-rate loan from a finance company, you can also consider using a social lending network. These networks, also called peer-to-peer loans, generally have much lower overhead and as a result can offer much lower interest rates. They're facilitated by professional companies
familiar with this type of lending,
to simplify things for all parties.

Personal Loan Reviews

Avant is one of the newest providers in the personal loans market, opening its doors in Chicago in 2012 and receiving its first accreditation with the Better Business Bureau in March 2015. It currently holds a solid A+ rating with the BBB.

Avant provides access to one of the larger ranges of consumer loans available, from $2,000 to $35,000. Loans through the Avant platform include terms from 2 to 5 years. As an example, a $5,700 loan with an administration fee of 4.75% and an amount financed of $5,429.25, repayable in 36 monthly installments, would have an APR of 29.95% and monthly payments of $230.33.

Although Avant is relatively new to the online lending business, the Avant platform has already issued more than $1 Billion in loans to over 450,000 customers. With nearly 500 employees working to provide affordable loans to consumers in need, they bring a professionalism and dedication that
is welcome to this industry.

There are no extra charges for prepayment of your loan, although late fees may apply if a payment is missed. Customer service is available 7 days a week.

Another feature that we liked with Avant is how quickly they provide access to funds. The Avant platform can often send your money via direct deposit as soon as the next business day‡.

Avant's loan application and approval process is very easy:

You provide basic information about yourself, such as your full name and address, income details, and social security number

After you receive your electronic loan offer, you digitally sign the contract they send

If approved, you could receive your money as soon as the very next business day‡

We're encouraged to see this lending platform enter the marketplace. They've earned a high BBB rating in a very short period of time, and don't charge exorbitant or hidden fees. Combined with the ultra-fast loan application process, Avant easily earns very high marks.

If you're looking for a personal loan, MoneyLion may have the solution you need. MoneyLion is Better Business Bureau accredited with an "A" rating and has been in business since 2014. Other products and services MoneyLion offers include credit monitoring, personal finance services and advice, points and rewards earned through being proactive about tracking your finances, and a mobile app to track your borrowing,
savings,
and investing activities.

To apply for a MoneyLion loan:

Visit MoneyLion and fill out an application by signing up for a new account.

Return customers can log into an existing account and apply through the dashboard by pressing the "New Loan" button.

Prequalification to check what your rate is takes just a few minutes through an online two-step information gathering process. The process asks for:

contact information

social security number

date of birth

how much you need to borrow

the purpose of the loan

employment status

gross annual income

Joining MoneyLion via online registration is free. The cost of a loan is expressed in the loan interest rate. People having a credit score lower than 640 will expect to pay interest rates from 36% and up. People with credit scores 640 and up will pay interest rates between 7% and 36%.

Interest rates can further be reduced by up to 50% by adding "Boosts". Boosts are engagement from friends and family such as likes on photos you post to Facebook. We think this method of lowering interest rates will particularly apply to the younger set; most "traditional" lenders don't include social media engagement as a way of saving money!

The primary determination of your rate and loan amount comes from the following six criteria:

Credit history

Ability to pay

Existing debt and monthly expenses

Employment and income

Residence history

Boosts

MoneyLion customer support is offered via an online search or a contact form.

Customers who like MoneyLion say that the loan process was fast and easy, the company is honest and up-front about loan terms, and that customer service is great. Of course, as with any business, there are bound to be complaints. We found that the primary complaints centered around issues with reward points, having to pay the interest in full before decreasing the principal, and "predatory" interest rates.

On the plus side, MoneyLion appears to respond regularly to negative reviews with offers to further assist dissatisfied customers. In the majority of cases where customers gave negative reviews, it appears the borrowers didn't take time to carefully read the loan's terms and understand how short-term, unsecured loans work in general.

Although they're newer to the Personal Loans marketplace, we like what MoneyLion has to offer and think they're a solid choice to consider for your lending needs.

No matter where you borrow money from, before you get your next personal loan you should consider the following:

BBB rating. Does the lending company have a solid history of doing good business with its customers?

Loan size and rate. How much will the lending company offer? What interest rate do they charge their customers?

Loan application process. When applying for your personal loan, can it be completed online? Is the lending process easy and straightforward?

TopConsumerReviews.com has reviewed and ranked the best online personal loan providers available today. We hope this information helps you find the best loan at an affordable rate that meets your needs!

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